Spring bumper and draft gear



March 11, 1952 R. c. KEPNER SPRING BUMPER AND DRAFT GEAR Filed Jan. 16, 951

R O T N E V m Pusan-r Ct Kennsn 4m ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 11, 1952 SPRING BUMPER AND DRAFT GEAR Robert C. Kepner, Bloomsburg, Pa., assigncr to American Car and Foundry Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey Application January 16, 1951, Serial No. 206,139

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to spring bumper and draft gears in general and in particular to such gears for use on mine or other industrial cars.

The majority of cars as built at present have the draft and buff forces imposed on the car at vertically spaced points. This results in an eccentric loading tending to bend down the car ends; also, the present bumpers generally become loose in service with result that the parts vibrate and are quickly worn out. It is an 010- ject, therefore, of the present invention to provide a spring bumper and draft gear whichthe resilient means is held precompressed and looseness cannot develop.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a combined spring bumper and draft gear in which the line of draft and buff is cen- .trally located and eccentric loading avoided.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a combined spring bumper and draft gear of simple and economical construction.

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent to persons skilled in the art from a study of the following description and accompanying drawings in which:

1 'Fig. 1 is a plan view with parts broken away to better disclose the construction.

Fig. 2 is a sectional View taken substantially on line 2-2 of Fig. 1, and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, it will be seen that the end structure 2 of the car has been shown, and this end structure is made up of a Z-shaped plate 2 having its side edges welded to side plates 4 by means of which the end structure can be welded, riveted, or otherwise secured to the car side sills. To the underside of the Z-shaped plate 2 is welded or otherwise secured an angle plate providing a vertical wall 6 and a lower horizontal wall 8, the ends of which are welded to the end plates l. Inwardly from the side plates 4 are a pair of vertically extending plates l having their edges welded to the upper flange of Z-shaped plate 2 and to the plates 6 and 8. The space enclosed.

between plates 2, 6. 8, and I6 constitutes an out wardly open housing into which the bumper head can be inserted. As clearly shown, the back wall 6 is centrally tied to the sloping portion of the Z-shaped plate by a substantially triangular shaped plate member l2.

The bumper head is of general box shape having a back wall [4 securely welded to top and. bottom outwardly directed plates [6 and I8 respectively. These plates have the outer edges curved and welded to a curved bumper face plate 20. Plates 8 and M are pierced to receive securing bolts 22 adapted to pass through these plates and through a resilient member 24 preferably formed of rubber. By tightening 'the bolts 22, this resilient block may be placed under a definite precompression thus preventing any looseness developing between the bumper head and its housing structure. 'Any buff forces applied to the face 29 will further compress block 24, but any outward motion of the bumper head is prevented by the bolts 22.

In order to impose draft forces on the bumper head, the upper flange of Z-shaped plate 2 is pierced to receive coupling pin B. This pin extends downwardly through plate 2 and has its lower end projecting into the bumper head through a slot 26 formed in top plate l6. Draft forces will be imposed on the coupling pin by means of. a coupling 0 normally resting on an intermediate plate 28 welded or otherwise secured to back plate 6 and to reinforcing plates Hi. This plate 28 is likewise slotted to receive the coupling pin and, at the same time, serve to limit the outward motion of the coupling pin under draft forces. Interposed between the lower end of the coupling pin and the inner surface of the bumper ,face is a resilient block 32 bearing directly on the plate 20 and on a block 34. This block 34 is preferably formed as a casting having spaced ears 36 partially surrounding and forming a bearing for the lower end of the coupling pin. outwardly of the ears 36, a pair of pins 38 are located which pins extend through openings in plates I6 and [8 of the bumper head. These pins are so located as to hold the resilient block 32 under precompression. Hold of the block under precompression will prevent looseness developing and will permit removal of the coupling pin B when so desired. Application of draft forces to the coupling pin will cause the same to fulcrum about its upper end and cause the lower end to further compress the resilient material of block 32.

From the preceding it will be seen that an extremely simple spring bumper and draft gear has been provided with the buffing forces resisted solely by the resilient block 24, and the draft forces resisted solely by the resilient block 32. These blocks are preferably made of rubber and as stated are held under precompression thereby preventing looseness developing with subsequent wear of parts. The draft forces will be absorbed substantially in the same plane as the buff forces thereby eliminating any eccentric loading of the car structure.

While the invention has been described more or less in detail with specific reference bein made to the drawings, it is obvious that various modifications and rearrangements of parts may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a combined draft and bumng gear for cars, the combination with a car of a bumper head movable inward relative to the car under buif forces from a normal position, resilient means opposing such inward motion, means preventing motion of said head outward from its normal position, a coupling pin fulcrumed on said car and projecting into said bumper head, and resilient means interposed between the lower end of said coupling pin and the bumper head to resiliently transmit draft forces directly to the bumper head.

2. In a combined draft and buffing gear io: cars, the combination with a car of a bumper head, means preventing outward movement or the bumper head relative to the car, a coupling pin fulcrumed adjacent its upper end on said car and projecting downwardly into said bumper head, and resilient means interposed between the lower end of said coupling pin and the inner face of the bumper head to resiliently transmit draft forces directly to the bumper head and car.

3. In a combined draft and bu ning gear in cars, the combination with a car of a bumper head, means preventing outward movement of the bumper head relative to the car, a cou pling pin fulcrumed adjacent its upper end On said car and projecting downwardly into said bumper head, resilient means interposed between the lower end of said coupling pin and the inner face of the bumper head to resiliently transmit draft forces directly to the bumper head and car, and means including stub pins engaging said bumper head to retain said resilient means in position whereby said coupling pin may be removed.

4. In a combined draft and bufiing gear for cars, the combination with a car of a bumper head, means preventing outward movement of the bumper head relative to the car, a coupling pin fulcrumed adjacent its upper end on said car and projecting downwardly into said bumper head, resilient means interposed between the lower end of said coupling pin and the inner face of the bumper head to resiliently transmit draft forces directly to the bumper head and car, and means including stub pins engaging said bumper head to retain said resilient means in position whereby said coupling pin may be removed, said last named means retaining said resilient means under predetermined precompres- SlOIl.

5. In a combined draft and bufiing gear for cars, the combination with a car of a bumper head movable inward relative to the car under buff forces from a normal position, resilient means opposing such inward motion, means holding said resilient means under a normal precompression and preventing outward motion of said bumper head while permitting inward motion thereof, a coupling pin carried by said car and projecting downwardly into said bumper head, resilient means interposed between the lower end of said coupling pin and the bumper head to resiliently resist outward motion of the lower end of said coupling pin, and means retaining said last named resilient means in position within the bumper head.

6. In a combined draft and buffing gear for cars, the combination with a car of a bumper head movable inward relative to the car under buff forces from a normal position, resilient means opposing such inward motion, means holding said resilient means under a normal precompression and preventing outward motion of said bumper head while permitting inward motion thereof, a coupling pin carried by said car and projecting downwardly into said bumper head, resilient means interposed between the lower end of said coupling pin and the bumper head to resiliently resist outward motion of the lower end of said coupling pin, and means retaining said last named resilient means in position within the bumper head, said last named means including a bearing plate and stub pins extending transversely through the bumper head and adapted to hold the last named resilient means in precompression.

ROBERT C. KEPNER.

No references cited. 

